3,250,371 Shares in Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) Bought by Norges Bank

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Marathon Petroleum Co. (NYSE:MPC) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 3,250,371 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $453,427,000. Norges Bank owned 1.01% of Marathon Petroleum as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MPC. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Marathon Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in shares of Marathon Petroleum by 672.7% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 170 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the period. Asset Planning Inc bought a new position in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Marathon Petroleum in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Cape Investment Advisory Inc. raised its stake in Marathon Petroleum by 762.9% during the 4th quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 302 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.77% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Marathon Petroleum

In other news, insider Ricky D. Hessling bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $134.72 per share, with a total value of $269,440.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,162 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,638,464.64. This trade represents a 19.68 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Evan Bayh bought 1,000 shares of Marathon Petroleum stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $133.70 per share, with a total value of $133,700.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 69,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,266,078.50. The trade was a 1.46 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Marathon Petroleum Price Performance

MPC opened at $144.05 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.51, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.39. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $148.74 and a 200-day moving average of $151.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. Marathon Petroleum Co. has a 12-month low of $130.54 and a 12-month high of $221.11.

Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $33.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.94 billion. Marathon Petroleum had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 2.45%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.98 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Marathon Petroleum Co. will post 8.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marathon Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. Marathon Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on MPC shares. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Marathon Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Marathon Petroleum from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Marathon Petroleum in a report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Marathon Petroleum from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Marathon Petroleum has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.21.

About Marathon Petroleum

Marathon Petroleum Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated downstream energy company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Refining & Marketing, and Midstream segments. The Refining & Marketing segment refines crude oil and other feedstocks at its refineries in the Gulf Coast, Mid-Continent, and West Coast regions of the United States; and purchases refined products and ethanol for resale and distributes refined products, including renewable diesel, through transportation, storage, distribution, and marketing services.